Novolac cured epoxy resin/fullerene modified clay composites: applied to copper clad laminates

Abstract

Functionalized inorganic layered materials based on a modification system composed of benzalkoniumchloride-N-methyl pryrrolidine-fullerene (BEN-(C₆₀–O)) were designed and fabricated in this paper, with the aim to develop high performance fire retardant epoxy composites without halogen and phosphorus. A BEN-(C₆₀–O) modifier was used to increase the inter-layer distance between the layered material. Based on the functionalization of montmorillonite type clay (CL88), a series of novolac cured epoxy resin/BEN-(C₆₀–O)-CL88 composites have been developed. The structural morphology and dispersion properties of the composites were investigated using wide-angle X-ray diffraction, and transmission electron microscopy. The composite reached V0 rating in the UL-94 vertical burning testing. Furthermore, the incorporation of BEN-(C₆₀–O)-CL88 into the novolac cured epoxy led to a significant reduction in peak heat release rate, total heat release and total smoke production, exhibiting superior fire resistance over its counterparts at the equivalent filler loading. Additionally, the composite shows improved thermo mechanical properties compared to the novolac cured epoxy resin.